Delonte West declares for draft

West will not hire an agent, thus keeping his college eligibility intact if he
decides to return for his senior season.

“I’m not going to say that I have to be a lottery pick in order to leave
[school], but I just want to make an informed decision,” West said on Friday.
“I’ll wait until I have all of the information in front of me and then we’ll
go from there.”

Teammate and consensus college Player of the Year Jameer Nelson made the same
decision last year, visiting the NBA’s pre-draft camp in Chicago before
deciding to return to Saint Joe’s.

West and Nelson made up one of the country’s best backcourts last season,
leading the Hawks to a 27-0 start and the first No. 1 ranking in school
history.

Saint Joseph’s finished the season 32-2, bowing out in the NCAA
Tournament’s Elite Eight as a top seed.

West has filed the necessary paperwork with the NBA office and is awaiting an
invitation to the Chicago camp, which runs from June 8-11. He has until June
17 to remove his name from draft consideration and keep his eligibility
intact.

“We have supported Delonte and this decision,” head coach Phil Martelli said.
“We want him to have as much information as we can glean from the NBA so that
he can make an informed decision and the very best one for Delonte.”

West, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard, averaged 18.9 points and 5.4 rebounds in 32
starts. Deadly from the outside, he shot 41 percent from three-point range
(56-of-136) and 51 percent from the field overall.

If he decides to return for his senior season, West would no doubt be among
the preseason favorites for Player of the Year honors.